Home Sales Rise Slightly

Median Price Hits $75,600

WASHINGTON — Sales of existing homes rose 1.2 percent in October as the median price rose $100, to $75,600, after falling for two consecutive months, the National Association of Realtors said Monday.

The modest rise in sales followed a 1.4 percent decline in September. That, however, came after an 11.5 percent increase in August. The latest figures brought the pace of existing-home sales to 3.49 million units at a seasonally adjusted annual rate.

That nearly matched the annual rate of 3.50 million units in August, which was the highest since October, 1979, when the rate was 3.77 million, the association said.

The number of existing homes available for sale at the end of October dropped to 2.4 million, an 8.3-month supply at the October sales pace--the lowest monthly inventory since December, 1983.

Clark Wallace, new president of the association, said housing affordability is ``relatively good`` as home prices have risen only modestly this year. He noted that mortgage rates have fallen while family incomes increased about 5 percent this year.

``Increasingly, homebuyers are finding that these are good times to satisfy their housing needs,`` he said.

The October pace of existing-home sales was 27.4 percent above the 2.74 million units posted in October, 1984.

Since January, the rate of home resales has improved 16.3 percent.

Jack Carlson, the association`s chief economist, noted that the rate of resale activity has been above the 3-million-unit rate for eight consecutive months. Such a sales spurt has not existed since 1976-1979 when mortgage rates ranged from 9 to 11 percent.

Carlson said the supply of homes on the market has been declining since June because of improved sales.

According to the Federal Home Loan Bank Board, the average interest rate for mortgages closed on existing homes was 11.30 percent in October, down from 13.04 percent a year earlier.

Although just two of the nation`s four regions reported increases in home resales in October, all recorded significant increases from a year earlier.

The West led the nation in October with a 7 percent gain in housing resales, up 17.3 pecent from a year earlier. The Northeast recorded a 4.3 percent increase in sales, 46.9 percent above October, 1984. Resales remained steady in the South but the rate was up 25.5 percent. Sales declined in the Midwest 2.1 percent, but the pace was up 25.7 percent.

The median price paid for an existing home in October was $75,600, up 5.1 percent from the $71,900 median price in October, 1984.

Nearly 53 percent of the homes sold last month were in the $40,000 to $90,000 range, the association`s monthly survey showed, while 1.7 percent sold for under $20,000 and 3.2 percent cost $250,000 or more.

Roughly 54 percent of the existing homes sold last month had three bedrooms, while nearly 18 percent had one or two bedrooms and nearly 29 percent had four or more bedrooms.